Matthew Willis

Matthew Willis is a writer and journalist specialising in naval aviation.

His first book, on the Blackburn Skua naval dive bomber and fighter, was published by MMP Books in 2007, and he has since published numerous books and articles on naval aircraft, personalities from the history of naval aviation, the restoration and preservation of classic naval aircraft and other aspects of naval history for the Naval Records Society, The Aviation Historian, Aeroplane, Flypast and others, and maintains the blog NavalAirHistory.com.

'The Fairey Barracuda was the first monoplane torpedo bomber operated by the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. The Barracuda experienced a difficult birth and development during the Second World War, and this, added to a number of fatal crashes, led to a poor reputation which the aircraft would never truly shake.

The Fairey Flycatcher was the archetypal between-the-wars Fleet Air Arm fighter. The idiosyncratic biplane was loved by crews and public alike, despite its unlikely appearance and moderate performance, and it was famed more for its aerobatic prowess and public demonstrations than glory on the field of battle.

This is the story of the famous German dive-bomber JU-87 Stuka. Development history of the all versions and variants. * Superb colour illustrations of camouflage and markings, and rare b+w archive photographs. Scale plans and colour photos of preserved aircraft. * Essential reading for aviation enthusiasts, aviation historians & scale aeromodellers.

The Blackburn Skua was the Fleet Air Arm’s first monoplane and its first dedicated dive bomber. Its derivative the Roc was the only turret fighter to see action with the Royal Navy. This book charts the development and service history of the two aircraft, through the difficult specification process, reaching...